DAVID GETS LAST LAUGH

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Following the Parkland school shooting that left 17 dead, David Hogg, a Parkland student, became a spokesperson for the anti-gun violence movement. He helped found Never Again MSD, an organization that advocates sensible gun regulations. He was instrumental in organizing March For Our Lives that drew nearly 800,000 to Washington, D.C.

Hogg’s activity has made him the target of the lunatic, right wing fringe. He has been called all sorts of names, mocked, and ridiculed.

The most disgusting abuse of the airwaves came from Fox News host, Laura Ingraham. And, I use the word “news” in the loosest definition because Ingraham is anything but a news commentator. She is a purveyor of hate and NRA-inspired propaganda.

When David Hogg publicly revealed his applications to several California universities were turned down, Ingraham turned to twitter. She tweeted a story from a conservative news site describing him as a “Guns Rights Provocateur” and accused Hogg of whining.

The fact that a nationally known media host would ridicule an 18-year-old high school boy is stupid and arrogant, revealing Ingraham’s dark soul. Just about when you think the fanatical guns rights people have sunk as far as they can go, along comes Laura Ingraham who used her position to disparage a high school student who lost fellow students and friends in a mass shooting.

Now, David Hogg has been accepted by Harvard and will enter next fall majoring in Political Science. Any comment, Laura Ingraham?

GUN SAFETY: THE ROAD AHEAD

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Clearly, there is a path forward, and it is at the state and local level—not the federal level. The Trump administration’s recent decision to reclassify bump stops as a machine gun allowing federal authorities to ban it is a tiny step forward, but it too little too late for people at the Las Vegas concert.

You, the reader, can make a difference by joining the growing number of voices of concerned Americans demanding some measures to curb the slaughter. It will take thought; imagination, patience, and determination make our lives safer.

More and more, people are finding ways to keep firearms out of public venues. Moms Demand Action have taken the gun issue to large retailors and are asking large retailors to prohibit customers from carrying guns into their locations. The threat of a boycott gets businesses attention. Moms Demand Action has been successful with Starbucks, Target, Chipotle, Jack in the Box, and Sonic Drive-In, just to mention a few.

Curbing gun violence has made progress, albeit it is slow—almost all of it at the state and local levels. Here is an example; Washington State passed Initiative 594 by a wide margin. The measure requires criminal background checks on all firearms sales and transfers in the state including at gun shows and on the Internet.

Initiative 594 does not undercut one aspect of the Second Amendment; it should be adopted in all 50 state. If 594 had been in place in 2007 in Virginia, Seung-Hui Cho almost certainly would not have been able to buy a gun and slaughter 32 people and wound 17 others at Virginia Tech. (To be continued)

BOOK DEAL--AMAZON

FYI--For anyone interested in my books, my publisher is part of an Amazon promotion. With every order of $20.00 or more you get $5.00 back. The code when ordering is  GIFTBOOK 18.

WORKSHOPS AND OPEN MIC TO RESUME IN JANUARY 2019

The Workshop slated for December 8th and the Open Mic scheduled for December 15th at the Lancaster Community Library have been cancelled due to the holidays and conflicting schedules. The Workshops and Open Mic will resume in January 2019. Happy Holidays to everybody and a great New Year's celebration from The Writers Guild of Virginia.